Type BBQ on balcony into a search bar and you get a wall of contradictory answers: one forum swears it is never allowed, the next says everyone in the building does it. Both can be right, because the rule that applies to you is not a national one. It is written in your building's by-laws and, if you rent, in your lease.
This guide is for renters and apartment dwellers who want to cook outside without a dispute with the body corporate or a deduction from their bond. It covers who actually decides, which compact formats suit a small balcony, and the cleaning routine that leaves tiles and rendered walls the way you found them. If you would rather browse first, the BBQs and outdoor cooking range is a sensible starting point.
BBQ on balcony: the three rulebooks that decide
Three separate documents can govern what you cook on outside an apartment, and they do not always agree. Working through them in order saves a lot of wasted shopping.
The first is the strata by-laws or body corporate rules registered for your building. They vary enormously between schemes: some prohibit any open flame on a balcony, some permit electric appliances only, some allow gas subject to conditions such as bottle size or clearance from the boundary. Ask your strata manager or building manager for the current registered by-laws rather than relying on what a neighbour tells you.
The second is your residential tenancy agreement. A lease can add conditions on top of the by-laws, including clauses about appliances, alterations and damage to surfaces. Read the lease, and if the wording is vague, ask the property manager in writing so the answer is on record before you spend anything.
The third is the general law that applies to everyone: state fire authority declarations and local council rules. Those bite hardest on solid fuel, and our guide to solid-fuel and charcoal BBQs, flavour and fire bans explains how fire ban days work and which state service issues them.
One pattern is common enough to plan around: many Australian buildings ban solid-fuel BBQs on balconies while permitting electric ones, with gas sitting somewhere in between depending on the scheme. Treat that as a pattern rather than a rule, and check the by-laws and the lease for your own address.
Small formats that suit a rented balcony
Balconies punish anything oversized. Before you look at models, measure the usable depth and note where the door swings, where the clothes airer lives and how people walk through. Then decide how much of that space you are willing to give up.
For most apartment balconies the honest answer is a compact, portable unit. The Napoleon Travel Q 285 ($499) is that kind of BBQ: small enough to bring out for a cook and put away afterwards, which also means it comes with you when the lease ends. Portability is worth more to a renter than to anyone else.
If you have a deep balcony, a terrace or a rented townhouse courtyard, a trolley BBQ starts to make sense. The Coleman Revolution 2 Burner BBQ - Charcoal Glimmer ($1,249) gives you two burners, a lid and a work surface without the footprint of a four-burner, and wheels matter on moving day.
Step up again only if the space genuinely allows it. The Coleman Revolution 4 Burner BBQ with Side Burner - Charcoal Glimmer ($1,399) suits a wide terrace or a courtyard where it can stay set up permanently. On a balcony a metre and a half deep it will dominate everything else you own.
Balcony BBQ formats compared
The right format depends less on your cooking ambitions than on what your building permits and how often you expect to move.
| Format | Best for | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|
| Compact portable gas BBQ | Small balconies and renters who move often | Needs somewhere compliant to keep the gas bottle |
| Electric BBQ | Buildings that permit electric appliances only | Needs a weatherproof outdoor power point nearby |
| Trolley gas BBQ | Deep balconies, terraces and rented courtyards | Footprint, and moving it down a lift at the end of a lease |
| Charcoal or solid fuel | Backyards, not balconies in most schemes | Commonly prohibited outright; embers, ash and smoke drift |
Smoke, neighbours and the complaint that starts everything
Most balcony BBQ bans did not arrive out of nowhere. They were written after a complaint, and the complaint was almost always about smoke drifting into the unit above, or grease marking someone else's rendering.
Position the BBQ away from the boundary wall and away from any window or door that opens onto a neighbour's space, and cook with the lid down where the food allows it. Never run a gas BBQ in an enclosed or partly enclosed balcony: once a space is sealed with glass or blinds, the ventilation the manufacturer assumed is no longer there.
Wind matters as much on level nine as it does in a backyard. Balconies channel it, and a gust that pushes smoke sideways into the flat next door will do more damage to your tenancy than any cooking mistake. Watch where the washing blows before you decide where the BBQ lives.
Bond-safe cleaning for a rented balcony
Grease is what costs renters money. It lands on tiles as a fine mist, soaks into unsealed concrete and porous pavers, and marks rendered walls in a way that a standard bond clean will not lift for free.
Three habits prevent almost all of it. Put a mat or a protective tray under the BBQ from day one. Wipe the surrounding surfaces while the splatter is still fresh, and clean the plates after every cook rather than at the end of the season. A dedicated degreaser does work that dish soap cannot, and our Cleaning Products ($79) cover that side of it.
At the end of a tenancy, photograph the balcony before and after you move the BBQ out. If a mark has appeared, deal with it while you still have access. Check the lease for anything about appliances left behind, too, because a BBQ abandoned on a balcony can become a removal cost billed back to you.
BBQ on a rented balcony: frequently asked questions
Do I need my landlord's permission to use a BBQ on a balcony?
Usually yes, or at least you need it confirmed in writing. Your lease and the building's by-laws both apply, and a property manager's written confirmation protects you if the arrangement is questioned later. Ask before you buy, not after.
What size BBQ fits on a small apartment balcony?
Measure the usable depth first, then leave a walkway you can comfortably pass through, which is roughly 700 mm. On a balcony around 1.5 metres deep that generally rules out full-size trolley units and points you at a compact portable BBQ you can store against a wall.
Can BBQ grease cost me my bond?
It can, if it marks a surface that was clean at the start of the tenancy. Grease on tiles, decking and rendered walls is usually treated as damage rather than fair wear and tear. Protecting the surface underneath and cleaning as you go is far cheaper than remediating it later.
Where can I store a gas bottle in an apartment?
Outdoors, upright and ventilated, and never inside the unit or in a car park storage cage unless the building explicitly permits it. Many by-laws also cap the bottle size allowed on a balcony, so check the by-laws and the lease before you fill anything.
Shop the range
Compact formats and a little paperwork make balcony cooking work in most rented apartments. Compare sizes across the Coleman BBQ range while you are there. A decent set of 17" BBQ Tongs ($29) does more for a tight balcony than another gadget.
We deliver Australia-wide, delivery is free on orders over $100, and most orders are dispatched within 3-10 business days. Returns are 30 days with no restocking fee, and installation is available on request.
